The Effects of Social Media on Our Social Cognition, and How to Combat Them

3 min readMay 28, 2021

Pancake Statement

Social media platforms have tremendously affected the social aspects of our lives by fabricating a sense of social connection that obscures the natural, intimate ones we desire and need.

Causes of Pancake-ification:

The “Score” feature is built into social media platforms in many ways. The number of likes or follows that people have can be seen by others as a level of status or popularity. It is responsible for users feeling more prompted to stay engaged and lively on the platform to boost their “score”.
Addictive aspects like infinite scroll and the pull to refresh feature are designed to keep you on the app for as long as possible. The longer a user stays on the app the more their sense of connection with society will grow inauthentic.
Social Media platforms like Instagram or Facebook create unrealistic expectations. Curated feeds present unrealistic images of what a relationship should be or how many friends you should have, always prompting you to compare yourself to others.
It can further societal polarization. Social media trends have continually become more and more politically driven, sometimes leading to online instances where verbal conflict arises as groups disagree with one another. Allows you to say something you normally wouldn’t in person, making you fall out of your social awareness even more.
It creates a vast sense of exclusion. The FOMO (fear of missing out) has been linked to social media in many studies. Viewing content from peers of activities that they didn’t attend causes insecurities.

Building the Cathedral

Moving forward, I will remember McLuhan’s rule that the medium is the message. When I need to have important conversations with an individual I will make sure I do so in person, or the next closest thing.
In the future, with the knowledge that I have obtained regarding the addictive features of social media apps I will be able to identify those features before they perform their tasks on me.
I will remember our primal desire for belonging and tribalism, and that we can’t possibly hold intimate connections with the wide range of social connections that social media platforms expose us to. I will spend real time with my real relationships that matter most to me.
I will remember the attention economy, and that media is no longer concerned with bringing real information, but rather holding and selling our attention to advertisers so I don’t spend as much time consuming media.
I will stay aware of the effects the media has on the polarization and the perception gap of the country politically. I won’t fall victim to being turned against one another or cut off friends due to the beliefs we hold individually.

Sources

Written by Luke Siegert